Tim Keller’s “Counterfeit Gods”: Chapter 6 – The Hidden Idols in Our Lives

I. Introduction

1. We’ve been dealing with personal idols – i.e., idols of the heart - It’s easy to spot these because they are the passions of our heart


2. Now Keller explores the “hidden” idols in our lives – the idols of our culture & society


3. Keller starts out hitting at a recurring idol - money

• Our particular culture here in America is built upon capitalism & profit


• In and of themselves, those things are not bad


• However, Keller points out that our society’s preoccupation with profit has led to abuses


• Ex: Paying employees what they are worth & providing them a good working environment leads to higher profits


• Keller points out that it’s simply the right thing to do


• Honesty & commitment are goods in themselves & are equally important as profit

II. How did we get here?

a) I want to introduce a concept quickly that is a good overlay concept to all of the cultural idols we’re discussing

• Francis Schaeffer in his book, “The God Who Is There” came up with the concept he called “The Line of Despair”

Europe (pre-1890) / U.S. (pre-1935) ___________________________________________ The Line of Despair

• Above the line, man dealt in absolutes (God); below the line, truth has been blurred (enter Fredrick Nietzche who said, "God is dead.")


• We don’t have time to dive too deep into this, but the long-and-short of it goes like this:


• Pre-1935 – “she is a good girl;” we both would think the same thing: she goes to church, she studies hard, she volunteers at a soup kitchen


• Post-1935 – “she is a good girl;” You might still use the same concepts to describe this “good girl,” however, to me the term “good” means she hasn’t killed anyone, she’s only been in jail once


• Because of relativism, we now have a different definition of “good”


• What Schaeffer points out next is that the Line of Despair has infiltrated not only our broad culture, but the church

Philosophy

Art

Music

General Culture

Theology

• What Schaeffer is saying is that it was a subtle, gradual process for our society and ultimately our theology to remove God and replace Him with relativism

b) Keller approaches it from the “Hope” of a nation

• He quotes Andrew Delbanco in “The Real American Dream”


• The “Hope” of a culture is what it tells its members what life is all about


• In sequence, he states American’s “Hope” went from God, to Nation, to Self


• The U.S. was a Christian story that was abandoned during the Enlightenment of the 18th century for the deified nation; that “hope” was replaced by the age of “Self”


• Keller: “Any dominant culture “Hope” that is not God Himself, is a counterfeit God. And also, “When we are completely immersed in a society of people who consider a particular idolatrous attachment normal, it becomes almost impossible to discern it for what it is.”

III. Idols in Our Religion (the effects of the Line of Despair in Religion)

a) Three types of Idolatry in Religion

1. Doctrinal Accuracy – relying on the rightness of one’s doctrine for standing with God rather than on God’s grace; Proverbs – “scoffer,” contempt & disdain for opponents rather than graciousness; sign that we don’t see ourselves as sinners saved by grace


2. Ministry Success – mistaking spiritual gifts (talent, ability, etc.) for fruits of the Spirit (love, joy, patience); mistaken feeling that our standing with God depends on how many lives we are changing; Keller points out that ministers can suffer from this religious idol


3. Moral Rectitude – seeking to control God & others through our moral performance; we feel God & others owe us respect; it’s a form of moral striving for our own salvation

IV. Man (people) on the Run

a) Keller uses the story of Jonah to illustrate how the idols that drive us are complex, many-layered, & largely hidden from us

• Cultural/Religious idols can super-charge personal idols


• Jonah: prophet; nationalistic zeal; urged King Jeroboam to pursue expansionist military policy


• God commands Jonah to go to Ninevah – the most powerful city in the world – to proclaim God’s word & bring Ninevah to repentance


• As He does with us, God was putting all of Jonah’s idols to the challenge

a) Warning Ninevah would benefit them and be disastrous for Israel

b) Assyria was a violent & cruel empire – Jonah is biased

c) What does Jonah do in response to God’s command?

• He flees – goes in opposite direction (West) on a boat


• Hilarious to me – Does Jonah actually think he can escape God by getting on a boat?!


• We do this don’t we – we skip church; we avoid Scripture; we go to the things that fill our minds with anything but God

V. What are Jonah’s Idols?

a) Personal – ministry success

b) Cultural – nationalism for Israel over God

c) Religious – moral rectitude; he felt superior to the wicked, pagan Ninevites

• Peter is convicted of these same issues


• Galations 2 – Peter refused to eat with Gentile Christians


• Paul convicts Peter that he’s not acting in line with the Gospel (Galations 2:14)

VI. How Ought We to Defeat Our Hidden Idols?

• Jonah is an example of how we can let our religiousity turn into a idol that becomes super-charged and multi-layered

1. Humility – Jonah had to sit in the belly of a whale


2. 2. Watering – In order to reseed a yard, you must water the yard continually after laying the seeds not to simply cause the grass to grow, but to break down the hard outer shell of the seedling; this is similar to our spiritual growth; we need the constant watering of Scripture, Worship, Service, & Fellowship to break through our idols and maintain our focus on Christ


3. 3. Love – Keller rightly points out at the end of this chapter “Shouldn’t we just love like God?”

• We live, work, have fellowship with image-bearers each and every day; we need to love as God loves and our idols will have little ground in which to root themselves!


• Burk Parsons said it best with regard to our religious idols: “Is your goal celebrity (sitting at Jesus’ right hand) or sevanthood (washing the feet of a bunch of nobodies)?

"Counterfeit Gods" - Chapter 4: The Seduction of Success

I. Introduction

a) Success: does anyone know how many times the word appears in Scripture???

• Twice (depending upon your version) – II Chronicles 7:11 / Joshua 1:8


• “Sakal” (Heb) – means skillful, wise, prosperous


• Key: success is not always about money, fame, or power per se

b) Prosper: appears in Scripture 21 times

• Psalms 118:25 / Daniel 3:30 / 3 John 1:2


• “Tsaleach” (Heb) – means to be good, to breakout


• “Euodoo” (Gk) – means to have a good journey, succeed in business, succeed in reaching

c) Keller starts with a quote from Madonna

• “feeling of inadequacy”


• “My struggle has never ended and it probably never will.”


• One of her better known songs “Vogue” describes current popularity of fashion and fame; how quickly those things fade???

II. When does personal success & achievement become an idol?

a) Answer: When our view of ourselves becomes distorted

• Achievements = basis of our self-worth


• Achievements = keep us safe


• Achievements = lead us to a belief in our supremacy / autonomy

b) Luther: “I have three evil dogs: ungratefulness, arrogance, and envy. When all three bite, one is badly mauled.”

• Envy – when we covet the success of others


• Key: what are we saying when we question our perceived lack of success or the coveted success of others?


• We are saying that God doesn’t know what He’s doing!


• The fallen, arrogant creature is trying to tell the Omnipotent Creator what is best?!


• Can you imagine anything so ridiculous?

III. What are the possible signs in an individual’s life which point to the fact that success is an idol?

a) Lack of confidence unless we’re at the top

• Chris Evert – “I needed the wins, the applause, in order to have an identity.”

b) Think our success can solve our problems

• Naaman (II Kings 5:1) – he is commander of the army, highly regarded among men, but he had leprosy


• Though he had success & wealth, under it all his life was falling apart


• His wife’s slave – she was an Israeli girl taken captive by Naaman’s men; she directs him to see Elisha the prophet (we’ll get back to this slave girl when we talk about solutions to our success idols)


• Naaman takes money, clothing, letter from his king – he thinks he can use his success to get healing


• Question: How do we follow Naaman’s folly?


• Name dropping?


• Putting our faith in our success instead of God


• Naaman was seeking a tame, private God who can be put into debt


• It is God who puts us in debt with His grace


• Keller: "Only if we understand Grace will we see our successes are ultimately gifts from God."


• Ironic: We want to use gifts given from God to hold God in debt – typical sinful man

IV. How can we break our heart’s fixation on doing “some great things” in order to heal ourselves?

• We must look at the Slave Girl – captured by the raiding Syrians; at the bottom of the Syrian social structure; who is responsible? Field Marshall Naaman!

a) Idolizing the top of the ladder can lead to cynicism & bitterness

• That’s not what this slave girl felt


• “If only my master would see the prophet.”


• She saw her role as glorifying God • Matt 5:44-45 – “But I say to you, love your enemies, bless those who curse you, do good to those who hate , and pray for those who spitefully use you and persecute you, that you may be sons of your Father in heaven; for He makes His sun rise on the evil and on the good, and sends rain on the just and on the unjust.”


• She did not seek revenge; she trusted God to be the judge of all


• Francis Schaeffer: “The vocation of an honest merchant or housewife has as much dignity as the vocation of a king.”

b) The Idol of Success cannot be expelled – it must be replaced

• Keller: "Only when we see what Jesus, our great Suffering Servant, has done for us will we finally understand why God’s salvation does not require us to do “some great thing.”


• Matt 6:19-21 – “Do not lay up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moth and rust destroy and where thieves break in and steal; but lay up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where neither moth nor rust destroys and where thieves do not break in and steal. For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also.


• This is what Naaman struggled with – he took money, clothing, references from his king; that’s where his heart was – thinking his success and temporary treasures would save him.


• When we focus on Christ and his reign and use any success for His glory, then our success will be in the proper context and we will less likely to make any success or any sought after success an idol

V. Conclusion

• Naaman humbled himself in the end and did as Elisha instructed, and as a result, Naaman’s leprosy is healed!


• But Naaman still doesn’t get it – the free gift of Grace


• II Kings 5:14 – “But he (Elisha) said, ‘As the Lord lives, before whom I stand, I will receive nothing.’ And he (Naaman) urged him to take it, but he (Elisha) refused.”


• Elisha gets it on two fronts: 1. He wanted Naaman to know & realize grace is free! 2. Elisha himself is focused on the right thing – it’s not his success (Naaman’s healing) but God’s success


• Keller: “Jesus’ salvation is received not through strength but through the admission of weakness and need.”


• Lack of personal success can be a blessing through which God brings mercy to the lost (look at the Slave Girl)


• Keller: “God chooses the weak things of the world to shame the strong.”

Counterfeit Gods: Love is Not all You Need (Chapter 2)

Okay, I'll admit it. It feels a bit silly to write a blog about a chapter in a book that we can all go read. (I'll also admit that it feels silly to use the word silly when you're writing to a group of adults, but I'll blame that on young children in my household...and I'll blame it on my wife because she's kind of silly). So, I'm not going to completely recap Sunday's lesson or the chapter, but hopefully will recap the general concept we studied. In essence, we learned that love can be, and probably is, one of the subtle idols in our lives that pull us away from a God-oriented life.

Sweet Home Alabama; Love, Actually; The Princess Bride; The Bachelor...just to name a few...are movies or tv shows that epitomize Western society's view of love. And that's the romantic, feel good side; but our society also speaks heavily to a sensual love, sexual gratification and physical satisfaction.

To sum up the way we tend to view love in our culture, we have to go to Mike's comment in class, "Show me the money!!!" Wait, no. That was another Jerry McGuire quote. What was it again? Oh yeah, "You complete me" was potentially the most cried to phrase of 1997. The comment was so sweet, so romantic and such a beautiful picture of love. Oh right, it was also delivered by Tom Cruise - quite possibly the male version of Rachel. And, as you recall from this week's lesson, Keller takes us through Genesis 29 and Jacob's idolatry of Rachel. He is seeking to fill an emptiness in his life through her. We too view love as a way to fill our emptiness, as something to make us happy, as something to complete us.

Now, before we go too far down the path of lambasting the idol of love, we must be perfectly clear. Love and marriage are awesome. God gave us these as gifts to learn to love him, and to learn how he loves us. Remember in the book The Sacred Marriage what we learned about love:

1. We love and are loved sacrificially


2. We are servants as God serves us


3. We forgive and are forgiven unconditionally


4. We show grace and we are shown grace


5. We show affection and are shown affection.

The list goes on, but you get the point. Love your marriage, but, at the same time, try to remember where to put your hope.

What do you see in this picture?

That's right..."gazing in the same direction." (Now, for the sake of argument, assume the dogs are gazing at God). If we start looking to our spouse, to a romantic feeling for someone else, to love for our children, or to physical satisfaction to fulfill our needs; then we stop gazing at our Creator who made us to glorify him and to enjoy him forever. That's when we know that love has become an idol. Frankly, it's probably an idol that is more prevalent than we are willing to admit.

Are we burdening our spouse with what only the Lord can fulfill? Are we pushing our Lord and Creator out of the center of our lives because love has become an idol?

If so, what do we do? Keller suggests we reorient our lives toward God. Please post comments for ways to do so. A few that we offered during class were:

• Ease the burden / frustration that we direct toward our spouse
• Pray
• Stay prepared because if you think you've kicked the idol, it's likely to come kicking back (I'm paraphrasing)
• Remind yourself to be content in what God has given you
• Use the issues in your marriage, big and small, as a gentle reminder to turn to the Lord for your fulfillment
• Commit to your devotion time - regardless, of whether you feel down, guilty, or like your not absorbing it.

What else can we do to reorient our lives toward God?

John Stott’s “Jesus Christ”: Lesson 11 – Moral Teacher

John Stott’s “Jesus Christ”: Lesson 11 – Moral Teacher

I. Introduction
a) Book of James – set up the frame of reference
James written by James, the brother of Jesus, to the church at Jerusalem
James was not considered to be a believer during Jesus’ lifetime

• Scholars, incl. Stott, believe he came to faith during a resurrection appearance
• Leader of the Jerusalem church
• Josephus, Jewish historian, records that James was known for his zeal for prayer; his was nicknamed “Camel Knees” because his knees were literally calloused from such devotion to prayer
• The book of James deals with affliction and the relationship between faith & obedience
• The letter obviously has a Jewish flavor since James was Jewish and head of the church at Jerusalem
• There are multiple OT references in the letter; you’ll see the language resembles Proverbs, Psalms, and Isaiah
• There is also a unique similarity between the language Christ used and the style James was written in
• Stott also suggests that James was a possible witness to the Sermon on the Mount and perhaps other of Jesus’ teaching moments
  

II. James 1:19-27

a) Question: Talking about morality, what one word/phrase would you use to describe Christian morality?

• Faith
• Holiness
• Righteousness
• Selflessness
• Obedience
  

b) James exhorts us to be “swift to hear, slow to speak, slow to wrath.”

Question: What problems can be avoided if we adhere to James’ instructions?

1. Stay away from anger
2. Keep foot out of mouth
   How often have you spoken poorly of someone or something only to be told how the person you’re talking to is intimately related to the someone or something?
   
3. What do these commands lead to?

• “Swift to hear” Quick to Learn
• “Slow to speak” Quick to grow
• “Slow to wrath” Quick to peace

• Matthew Henry: “It is the man who listens intently to the Word of truth who progresses in godliness.”

c) James puts anger & righteousness in opposition to one another

• We can easily see that God’s wrath is holy; However, man’s wrath is sinful
• Do we want justice when we’ve been wronged? No – we want revenge
  Example: What if Christ had called on the angels during his questioning before Pilate? We would not have received atonement. How much more glorious is the justice God provided in Christ’s death?
• This is not to say we should not defend ourselves when the time is right, but often times we spin our wheels with how to get even instead of allowing God to provide righteous justice on our enemies

d) James says “get rid of filthiness & wickedness” and instructs us to be humble

Question: What do humility & wickedness mean and why put them in opposition to one another?

• Selfishness = Evil
• Service = Humility
• We shouldn’t seek out suffering
• If we serve and sacrifice for one another and our fellow man, that naturally leads to suffering and that’s ok
  

e) Let’s look at the imagery provided in v. 22-25

Question: What warning does James give us?

• If we are a hearer of the word only and not a doer, we are only deceiving ourselves
• Imagery: A Man looking into a mirror – he sees his natural self, but he walks away and immediately forgets what kind of man he is
• How often do we do this?

1. Mirror = Scripture
2. Natural Face = Our Sinful State
3. Our Reflection = the Scripture revealing our souls’ need for grace

• Quote: “The devil is most proud when he’s convinced us that we are humble.” – Burk Parsons
• Promise: (v.25) if we stay focused on Scripture and act on our convictions, we will be blessed
• “Liberty” = law of God sets us free

1. Rom 8:2 – “For the law of the Spirit of life in Christ Jesus has made me free from the law of sin and death.”

2. Gal 5:13 – “For you, brethren, have been called to liberty; only do not use liberty as an opportunity for the flesh, but through love serve one another.

f) Question: What negates a person’s profession of religion (v.26)?

• We think we are religious
• We don’t control our tongue
• We deceive our own hearts
• Key – reliance on our “own” religion
• We talked last week about relying “in Christ” and “with Him” and not on ourselves; when we begin to think that we’re self-sufficient
  

g) Question: How do we stay out of trouble / avoid sin?

• Pure faith – grounded in Scripture (the mirror)
• Visit orphans / widows – serve one another
  

1. Side Note: 12 OT references to helping orphans & widows in the same verse (4 were in Isaiah)
2. This is a “McFly” moment – from the movie "Back to the Future," “Hello McFly”; I’m trying to teach you something
3. Clearly we are being called to serve those in need – specifically orphans & widows, but all those who are being marginalized
   

III. Wrap-up

a) Stott does a great job of wrapping this up for us – Threefold Ethical Duty

1. Ourselves – pure faith
2. Neighbors – service
3. God – worship / obedience
   

b) Quote: “God is teaching us something, showing us something, preparing us for something, every hour of every day. Live ready to see, listen, and learn.” – Burk Parsons

John Stott’s “Jesus Christ”: Lesson 10

John Stott’s “Jesus Christ”: Lesson 10

I. Introduction

a) First lesson of the New Year and we’re talking about suffering – what is that all about?
o Makes sense if you think about it – we know we are probably going to face some kind of suffering during the year ahead it’s something we need to think about so that we can deal with it appropriately

b) Book of II Timothy – set up the frame of reference
o II Timothy written by Paul to Timothy during his imprisonment in Rome; many scholars believe this was Paul’s last epistle
o Unlike I Timothy, this letter is addressing personal conduct and behavior
o What do you think Timothy was feeling after receiving this letter from Paul – the last letter you will probably receive from a man who was like a father to you???
• Sadness
• Anger – at Paul’s captors
• Eagerness to see him

II. II Timothy 1:8-14

a) V. 8-10: What has Christ done independent of human action or intervention?
• Saved us (v. 9)
• Called us (before time began) (v. 9)
• Revealed the gospel to us (v. 10)
• Abolished death (v. 10)
• Brought us life (v. 10)

b) Paul mentions being able to suffer for the gospel (v. 8 & 12) and he exhorts Timothy not to be ashamed; what are the instances we might be ashamed of being identified with Christ?
• Peer pressure
• Losing something / someone
• Fear; afraid to speak
• Lack of confidence
• Answer: I Peter 3:15 - “But sanctify the Lord God in your hearts, and always be ready to give a defense to everyone who asks you a reason for the hope that is in you, with meekness and fear.”

c) How do we address our fear?
• “Mistreatment from others is a glorious platform on which we can put the gospel on display.” – Pastor Tullian
• What does this mean???
• “A man’s contentment is never proven on good days.” – Burk Parsons
• Key: It is in our tribulations, when our fellow man expects us to act as he/she does, that we have the opportunity to display our faith – humility, confidence, peace

d) What does Paul encourage Timothy to continue to do?
• V. 13 – hold fast; remain faithful
• V. 14 – keep the truth; profess what has been entrusted to us

III. II Timothy 2:8-13

a) Paul again addresses suffering – why do we need to suffer?
• Paul says he suffers for the “elect” (v. 10)
• The spread of the gospel and God's glory are worth suffering for

b) Paul mentions a “faithful” or “trustworthy” saying in v. 11-13. What hopes are contained in these verses?
• We will live
• We will endure
• We will reign
• We will be saved in spite of ourselves

c) What do you notice in v. 13?
• If we are faithless, he remains faithful
• He cannot deny Himself
• We are His; He is never-changing

d) What caution is contained in v. 12?
• “If we deny Him, He also will deny us.”
• Luke 13:23-29 – “Lord, Lord open the door for us”
i. Double name suggests intimacy
ii. They think they truly know Him
• Jesus' response: “I do not know you, where are you from”
i. He doesn’t even know where they are from (not literally, but a lack of knowing them intimately)

IV. Wrap-up

a) Do we take God’s grace for granted???
• R. C. Sproul – “We have become accustomed to the mercy and the long-suffering of God. Amazing grace is no longer amazing to us.”

b) What is the good news?
• We can see in v. 9, 10, 13 of II Tim 1 – “in Christ Jesus”
• We can see in v. 11 , 12 of II Tim 2 – “with Him”
• Isaiah 40:31 – “but those who hope in the LORD will renew their strength. They will soar on wings like eagles; they will run and not grow weary, they will walk and not be faint.”
• Whatever battles we will face in 2011, we can take comfort that “in Christ Jesus” and “with Him” we will make it through the sufferings and bring Him the glory.

Christ the Liberator: Chapter 5

This week we began a new section of the Jesus Christ study, Paul's letters. Paul is indignant with the "foolish Galatians" because they are beginning to rely on themselves and their own acts to become righteous. Paul strongly reminds the Galatians that doing so would ensure their condemnation.

Are we that much different from the Galatians? Have we forgotten what it was when Christ entered our lives, how we were filled with the Spirit , and how we relied fully on him as the crucified savior and the one who took away all of our sin?

As I began studying this week, two images of "freedom" were stuck in my mind. They were both images from the Newseum's "Freedom Walk."

The first was a chunk out of the Berlin Wall:



The second was an upside down lawn mower chassis that was turned into a boat for a refugee who sought freedom from Cuba in the United States:

It was nearly time for church when God demonstrated two very interesting parallels between these images and our lesson.

1. The Berlin Wall

• The Communist built a wall in order to make their law stronger. But its effect didn't make for a stronger Germany or even a stronger East Germany. It's effect was to prevent families from reaching one another, to prevent friends from having relationships, and to create a form of slavery.
• This is what the Law can do to us if we try to obtain righteousness on our own. Reliance on the saving grace of our Lord Jesus Christ's crucifixion is the only way we will ever be righteous.
• This isn't to say that the law shouldn't be followed, as the Holy Spirit will help conquer the sins of the flesh. But, the key is to have our hearts in the right place. The key is recognizing that it is by faith that God counts us as righteous and it is by Christ's blood that the curse of the law was removed from us.

2. The Lawn Mower, turned Boat

• Imagine what it must have been to feel oppressed by a harsh dictatorship for your entire life. Imagine how badly Cuban refugees wanted to get to the United States. So badly, actually, that they would willingly risk their lives for freedom by traversing 90 miles of turbulent, shark-infested waters just to get a taste of freedom.
• Isn't that what Paul is saying in Galatians 3 and 5? With the transforming nature of our conversion and with Jesus Christ as the Great Liberator, shouldn't we have this amazing desire to be free? Would we traverse 90 miles of ocean in a tiny, one man boat made of a lawn mower so that we could taste the liberation given to us by Jesus?
• If so, then why would we ever try to earn that righteousness on our own? As soon as we try to earn righteousness, we are slaves again and not at all free. Yes, we become slaves to the law because if we don't follow every word of it, we will be cursed.
• So, let's have a joyful, emotional, powerful desire to allow the Holy Spirit power in our lives to battle against the desires of the flesh. In this way the fruits of the Spirit will ripen within us. Let's also have a joyful, emotional, powerful desire to be truly free from the curse of the law and reliant on Jesus Christ as a part of our identity.

So, read and pray over the scriptures:

Galatians 3:1-14 (click hyperlink) and Galatians 5:13-18 (click hyperlink)

Remember the following:

1. We cannot rely on ourselves for righteousness. Have faith in the power of God through Christ's crucifixion.
2. We must rely on the Spirit to give us strength to battle the desires of the flesh.
3. Then we too shall become sons and daughters of God.

Your turn, now. Please post comments on ways we can live according to the freedom we have received in Christ.

In Him,

The Word Became Flesh...

So, if you were in our Congregational Community this Sunday, you heard me talk about this already, but let me paint the picture of my life being a reflection of worldliness. Maybe this happens to you on occasion.

I started this week feeling tired, selfish and bitter which is a cycle that maybe I find myself in too often. It is a worldly cycle. Mind you, you need not be bitter to be worldly...but to be caught up in a world for yourself - personal accomplishment, happiness, materially-focused, creating idols of family or friends - now that is being of the world. So, that's where I was last Monday and Tuesday - completely caught up in mind and in spirit in the flesh. Oh, and let's add to this that I was trying to prepare a lesson on who is Jesus Christ according to John 1:1-14.

So, I suggest we all go back and read / pray over those scriptures. Do you see the same contrast I was feeling?! I was completely caught up in worldliness, but not in the world God created...a world where "All things were made through him, and without him was not anything made that has been made." Yes, a world where Christ preceded creation, a world where Christ was a part of the plan for this world long before he ever became flesh and dwelt among us, a world where God and the Word ("who was with God and who was God") had a greater plan for creation than a plan for us to live for ourselves.

So, the contrast to me was amazing. Rather than living from a worldly perspective, I prayed that God would lead and teach on Sunday and that I, and my worldliness, would fade to the background. And here is what he revealed about Christ:

• As already mentioned, Christ was a part of creation
o He was involved and vested in the plan for this world (which, amazingly, included his life and death )

• Jesus is the giver of life
o He gives to us a life of completion, a life of joy and a life of peace
o He was God and he dwelt amongst us and related to us
o He was God and he was tempted in the flesh and fought the same battles we fight every day by ignoring his own royal nature and coming to live in the world and to be with us
o He wants a relationship with us. He had a relationship with God since before creation and he came to earth to dwell with us and to relate to us and with us

• Jesus is the light
o The light shines in the world and, though the world doesn’t understand it, he is what gives us life
o John the Baptist gave testimony to this light not because God needs it, but because the world needs it

So, what does that mean for us? I suppose it means quite a bit, but let's sum it up with three points:

1) It means that we can enjoy and appreciate this life that God has given us in Christ.

2) It means that we should live our lives as a testimony, not to ourselves and not for other people's pleasure, but as a testimony to the light which is Jesus Christ.

3) We also know that through prayer and devotion, we should have a relationship with God where we talk and listen because he does care for us. And we should be grateful and praiseworthy in our devotions to the life we receive through Christ in the midst of this world (which, unknown to most, is not life, but death).

So, for me, personally, what did I learn? I was made aware that I can often be drawn to a self-centeredness, and toward a life where God is a supplement to me. Maybe it makes me bitter one day, proud another, and, scariest still, is yet another day where I'm indifferent altogether to my egocentrism and to the contrariness this is to a life in Christ. I learned that I need to focus more on who Jesus Christ is - not a supplement to me, but a part of our God, one who took part in creation. He is one who took on the same mind, body and flesh and humbled himself for our sakes. So, I too will work to be grateful for the life I have in him. I too will work to focus my devotion time so that it has a grateful, praiseworthy relationship-driven aspect to it. And, I too will work to improve on my attitude so that my life can be a testimony to the light.

Amen.